Libyan Rebels Set for Renewed Push to Tripoli

Reuters reports:

Libyan rebels renewed their push against leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces on Friday, coming under heavy fire just days after making hefty advances toward Tripoli on two fronts.

Tens of thousands of supporters of the defiant Gaddafi rallied in Tripoli's Green Square for Friday prayers, underscoring his refusal to step down after four decades in power and five months of fighting.

At least five rebels were killed and 17 injured on the front line near Misrata, on Libya's Mediterranean coast, according to local medical workers.

Rebels there came under heavy artillery fire from Gaddafi's forces and a Reuters team near the front saw a mortar shell land near a rebel unit.

Five members of the rebel unit were wounded, two seriously, the Reuters team said. One fighter's fingers were partly severed and hanging from his hand after the explosion.

A rebel sympathizer in Misrata told Reuters opposition forces had been moving closer to neighboring Zlitan, one of a chain of government-controlled towns blocking their advance to Tripoli.

As they advanced, pro-Gaddafi troops inside the city fired rounds of explosives to block their progress, the sympathizer said in an e-mail.

"The rebels are waiting for NATO backup or for Gaddafi forces to run out of ammunition to make a move to take the city center," he said.